Day 7: Pisa and Pizza

This morning, Allie and I set off towards the Duomo to climb to the top. 463 steps later, we reached the very top! After catching our breath, we were able to take in the fabulous views of Florence. We took time to walk around the whole top to see the sights from every side. We took many photos. Then, we climbed back down to meet mom and dad to enter the cathedral. When we walked in, we were expecting it to be as over the top as the exterior, however it was a bit more understated. Everything was beautiful, but there weren't many ornate details. We spent some time walking around and taking pictures and then exited to visit the museum. The museum showed what the facade looked like in the Middle Ages (more of a gothic style). The museum also gave more information on building the cupola, which is the dome on the top. We saw a few more statues that used to be in and around the cathedral. Then we went back to our hotel to change before our tour to Pisa. 

The meeting point was about a 20 minute walk from our hotel. We arrived and Allie and I went in search of lunch. We ended up getting a tomato and mozzarella sandwich. We climbed aboard the bus and 1 1/2 hours later, we arrived in Pisa. Our tour guide less us to the Square, known as the Square of Miracles. We met our local tourgude there, who gave us information about the different monuments in the square. She gave us more detail about the Baptistry and the Cathedral. We were able to go inside of the cathedral and it was much more ornate than the cathedral in Florence. They even had a mummy of the patron saint of Pisa inside! After going inside the church, we walked over to take a closer look at the leaning tower of Pisa. Contrary to popular belief, it is not actually sinking on one side, but actually the opposite. One side is being raised higher than the other due to water and soft soil underneath, combined with the weight of the tower. The tower is leaning 4 degrees. At one point the tower was leaning 7 degrees and was closed 10 years to help fix it. 

When the tour was completed, it was time for us to climb the tower. This time, the climb was only 296 steps, which wasn't nearly as bad as this morning. It was weird climbing because you can feel the tilt inside. In a few short minutes, we reached the top. We got some nice views of Pisa, the top of the church, as well as the Pisa soccer stadium. We also were able to see the 7 bells at the top of the tower. We learned that the leaning tower of Pisa is actually the bell tower for the church. Once we had gotten all of our pictures, we climbed down to take some of the obligatory pushing over and holding up the tower pictures. We quickly realized that it was a lot harder than it looks!! After several tries, we got some pictures that were passible. We walked over to the souvenir shop. It was just about time to meet back up with the tour as we were paying. Allie and I rushed ahead to let the group know we were coming. As we were approaching the meeting point, the tail end of the tour was walking out of the gates! Mom and Dad weren't there! As we attempted to keep up with the group, we tried to keep in contact to let mom and dad know where we were. After speaking with our tour guide a few times, they finally made it back to the bus! We thought there was a chance they were getting left in Pisa. 

Once we arrived back in Florence, we were all hot, tired, and hungry! We ate at a restaurant next to the Palazzo de Vecchio. As we scanned the menu, we realized this was a sister restaurant to one we had eaten at a few nights ago. We decided to stay and try some other things they had on the menu. We had bruschetta, Cesar salad, gnocchi with mozzarella and tomato sauce, and pizza with ham, salami, and mushrooms. Everything was yummy! While we ate, another orchestra played in the square, this time from Maryland! What are the chances of that?!?! To cap off the night, we went and got cannolis. 

It was a great last day in Florence and we are excited to move on to Rome in the morning!